Legal Marijuana Tour: 2 Hours in Spokane

Reporter’s notebook – Brian Bahouth …

I recently visited several adult-use cannabis stores in Spokane, Washington on my way to a vacation of joyously muddy trail running and back-country Telemark skiing in the secluded northwest, and even though I vowed to do no reporting work, I had to admit to my wife that I brought recording gear and could not drive through Spokane without taking a few moments to tour a few legal retail stores and see if anyone would speak with me in a recorded interview … I also wanted to seek out the best hash and tinctures and other low calorie/high THC edibles I could find to further help me cope with my time away from computer screens …

I visited Satori, Spokane Green Leaf and Sativa Sisters and found each establishment clean, well-lighted and orderly. In every store, alert bud-tenders and greeters paid scrupulous attention to the details of the law with positive, customer friendly attitudes. I was duly impressed and came away confident that legal, regulated cannabis is smart public policy and that Washington’s nascent experiment, while imperfect, is a giant step in the right direction.

And despite a particularly oppressive tax structure and well-established illegal market flooded with low price weed, each outlet I visited on a Tuesday afternoon saw a steady stream of surprisingly diverse and non-stereotypical customers … and I thoroughly enjoyed two types of hash and other treats I found there in a safe, regulated environment that spells money for schools and local jobs …

Eric Skaar is General Manager of Sativa Sisters in Spokane and took a few minutes to chat with me about running a legal weed shop … (8:40) …

– Kronic HD Tonic (Sativa) … adjective: heady … buzz: 8.0 out of 10 … price: $35.00 for 10, 9.6 mg servings … notes: ostensibly the same number of total milligrams of THC as the “Jewels” listed above, but this tonic has way more of what I want. A clean food to add to juice or coffee or whatever, and the associated buzz is what you’d expect from a grownup edible … I’d buy it by the gallon …

– Kronic HD Tonic (Indica) … adjective: smooth … buzz: 8.0 out of 10 … price: $35.00 for 10, 9.6 mg servings … notes: there is a palpable difference in the effects of the Sativa tonic when compared to the Indica. Sativa is good for a trail run or hike or skiing and such … Indica is good for relaxation and thoughtfulness, though I could certainly enjoy a jog after 35 mg of the Indica too … I wish I had more of both …